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by spiderlingthememe



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man - All Media Types, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Zombie Apocalypse, Gen, Hurt Peter, I'll add tags as the story progresses, Marvel Zombies, Parent Tony Stark, Peter Parker Deserves Better, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Precious Peter Parker, Steve is trying, Superfamily (Marvel), They all need hugs, Tony Feels, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Has Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, Zombie Apocalypse, but oh well, i totally stole that from the walking dead, im calling them walkers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-23
Updated: 2019-04-23
Packaged: 2020-01-04 20:46:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,785
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18351401
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spiderlingthememe/pseuds/spiderlingthememe
Summary: It came quietly, at first.A few articles here, a news report there. The Life Foundation had been working on Neurogenesis. The regeneration of dead cells.Regenerate dead cells. Not replicate.It came quietly, at first. Then all at once.





	1. Wake up. Search. Kill. Sleep. Repeat.

**Author's Note:**

> aka the Zombie au I've been wanting to read since forever, so I wrote it myself!
> 
> <3 Leave me a comment! The help motivate me!

It came quietly, at first.

 

A few articles here, a news report there. The Life Foundation had been working on Neurogenesis. The regeneration of dead cells.

The research had started using military funding to try and discover a way of regrowing amputated limbs of the brave soldiers who fought for others. To find a way to regenerate dead cells.

Regenerate dead cells. Not replicate.

 

It came quietly, at first. Then all at once.

 

\-  

 

Tony wiped a hand over his brow as he shoved another walker out of the path, looking back to see Steve and Natasha doing the same not far behind. Wake up. Search. Kill. Sleep. Repeat. They’ve been doing this same rotation for the past week. Trying to make their way through Manhattan, make it to Staten Island where rescue planes and ships were being sent in to bring the surviving somewhere safe.

_Surviving_. Tony thought.  _Funny how quickly that changes from living._

The walkers hit the Bronx first, then rapidly made their way to the Tower. Seems they thought taking on the world’s greatest defenders was the best way to kick off an apocalypse.

 

Wake up. Search. Kill. Sleep. Repeat.

 

Rhodey and Sam were the first to go to the lower levels when FRIDAY sounded the alarm. To see just what they were dealing with. It had been a normal day. The kid should’ve been at school. Today was lab day. Tony hated missing lab day. Try as he might, the kid still managed to break down his walls with one look from those damn brown eyes.

Rhodey and Sam never returned.

 

Wake up. Search. Kill. Sleep. Repeat.

 

There was nothing on the news. It seemed they deemed the news stations a perfect spot to hit first and foremost. Take away the world’s one warning. Then her defenders. Tony, Steve and Nat had managed to run with one final call out to keep comms open, find the others when it’s safe.

Satellites went first. Comms went down next. Tony hated missing lab day.

 

Wake up.  _Search_. Kill. Sleep. Repeat.

 

The plan to reroute to Queens was unanimous. Tony wasn’t leaving this damned state without his kid. They’ve been searching everywhere for the sprightly little wall crawler, hoping he would turn up soon. Hoping he had seen the security footage and stayed put.  _God this kid better still be alive._

Tony hated missing lab day.

 

Wake up.  _Search_. Kill. Sleep. Repeat.

 

_Search_.

 

-


	2. You miss your kid.

_ “Peter! What did I tell you about climbing on the ceiling in my lab?” _

 

_ Tony squinted up at his spider-kid’s flipped head from his spot breaching the door frame to the lab. Peter jerked his head up from where he stood, one foot coming loose from its spot at the loss of concentration.  _

 

_ “Gah! Mister Stark! You almost made me fall.” Peter whined. Tony glared and pointed to the floor.  _

_  
_ _ “Get down kid. I don’t want your dirty footprints all over my pristine ceiling.” Tony said. Peter flipped and dropped to the floor, graceful as ever, with an innocent smile. Tony rolled his eyes and ruffled Peter’s hair. “Are you trying to give me a heart attack? I think I’ve lost 10 years off my life since you crawled into it.”  _

 

_ Peter smirked and jumped up onto Tony’s spinning desk chair, “Oh come on Mister Stark, you know you’d be bored as hell without me to bother you.”  _

 

_ “Hey. Watch your mouth.” Tony said. Peter snickered and pulled his zip up tighter around him. Tony walked over and stopped in front of Peter, pulling the hood of the sweater up and over his eyes. “And what did I also say about stealing my sweaters, you minx.” _

 

_ “Heck. Bored as heck, and I didn’t steal it. You left it on the couch. Finders keepers.” Peter said, struggling out of Tony’s hold on the hood of his sweater with a grunt, shoving Tony’s hands away from his head.  _

 

_ “Alright, you can keep it, just don’t tell anyone. Don’t need Rhodey or Steve thinking I’ve gone soft.” Tony smirked and sat in the chair next to Peter, nudging his shoulder.  _

 

_ “Oh no, of course not Mister Stark,” Peter laughed and fake gasped, “we can’t have that.”  _

 

-

 

“Tony.” 

 

Tony blinked away the memory as he shifted his eyes to meet the man crouched in front of him. Steve’s blue eyes were staring into Tony’s with barely hidden concern, one hand holding his shield behind his back, the other resting on Tony’s arm, thumb rubbing absent minded circles on his bicep. Steve pinched his lips and shifted closer, now kneeling in front of Tony. “Come on Tony, go get some rest. It’s my turn to keep watch.” 

 

“It’s fine,” Tony said, his eyes flitting over the torn up and abandoned city, “I got it.” 

 

“No you don’t.” Steve said. “I was fine with you taking first and second watch, but this is where I draw the line.” Tony glared at the super soldier, but it fell flat. He looked down at his knees with clenched fists, taking a shaky inhale. Steve’s frown deepened as he pivoted to sit beside Tony, shield left on the ground next to his hip. 

 

“You miss your kid.” 

 

It wasn’t a question. Steve had said it with certainty. Tony closed his eyes as he said, “he’s not  _ my _ kid.”

 

“He may not be yours biologically, but you love him all the same. I can see it.” Steve was staring at Tony like he was digging deep into his soul, pushing down every wall, every barricade Tony set up to guard his vulnerable being. Cause that's what this feeling was. Vulnerability. Tony had buried it under building things. Things to protect him and his loved ones. He built his suits, a Tower, a  _ team _ . That’s what he did. He’s a mechanic, he builds thing. 

 

“Can you just- stop looking at me like that.” Tony jerked to a stand and moved away from Steve, crossing his arms tightly and taking deep, shaky breaths. “Just, whatever your trying to do, it’s not- it’s not working so  _ just go _ . I’m taking watch.” 

 

“Tony, don’t shut me out.” A hand gripped Tony’s arm, carefully pulling until that hand could envelope Tony’s calloused one. Tony took another breath and looked up at Steve. “We’ll find him. And we’ll do it,” Steve squeezed their clasped hands, “together.” 

 

Tony was struggling to get his breathing under control. He had managed to push it away for a while. To not think about the crushing pain that was losing that bright kid that crawled his way into Tony’s life and turned it upside down. The kid that he didn’t deserve to have in his life, didn’t deserve to have someone that good look up to him. “Steve stop.”

 

“Tony…” 

 

“No, Steve. You don’t _ get  _ it.” He pulled away from Steve and grabbed his left wrist, his arm starting to tremor. “This is all I can do. Keeping watch and protecting you two is the  _ only  _ thing I can do right now because the one thing I needed to protect, I-I couldn’t.” Tony’s eyes began to water but he blinked the tears away, just as he had many times before.

 

That was the hardest thing for Tony to come to terms with. The fact that he had so many protocols set in place surrounding Peter, but that they all failed when he needed them the most. When they first decided to make the internship into a full-fledged thing, Tony had given Peter a new Stark phone under the guise of it being an intern benefit, but was truly just a way for Tony to keep track of Peter. 

 

He had also, after many heavy conversations with May until she eventually caved, placed sensors and safety nets surrounding the apartment. With that, and having Happy drive Peter to school from now on, he had figured he had everything covered. May saw it as overbearing. Happy thought he was going into overprotective dad-mode, (and okay, maybe he was, but Peter didn’t seem to mind), and Rhodey would just laugh and shake his head, because he knew there was nothing that could be done to dissuade Tony from his mission to keep Peter safe. 

 

Until Zombies became a thing.  

 

And Tony didn’t have a protocol for  _ this _ .

 

“You don’t know what it’s like, to-to have a kid somewhere out there, probably scared and, and running, and doesn’t know where to go, and there’s  _ nothing _ I can do.” Tony turned back to Steve and jabbed a finger in his chest. “ _ Nothing _ , Steve. Do you get that?” Steve looked down sadly and slowly moved Tony’s hand from his chest, then taking his wrist and pulling him into a strong embrace. Tony froze for a moment, blinking minutely, then his face crumpled and he buried his nose in Steve’s shirt.

 

Steve tucked his head down, dropping his forehead onto Tony’s dusty hair and took a breath, squeezing Tony tighter when he felt the smaller man start to tremble in his hold. “You’re right,” he said, “I don’t know what it’s like, but you are also wrong.” Tony pulled his head up and squinted at Steve in confusion. “There’s always something you can do. You’re  _ Tony Stark _ .” Tony snorted and rubbed his eyes to clear some of his tears. 

 

“Little good that name is going to do me now.” Steve flicked Tony’s forehead and rolled his eyes at the little ‘ _ ouch _ ’ Tony let out. Steve paused for a moment, as if thinking his next actions through, then reached forward to hold both sides of Tony’s neck, looking deeply into his eyes.

 

“You’re more than a name.” 

 

Tony wasn’t sure he was ready to believe that, not right now. Right now, he was to tired. Steve seemed to realize this, pulling away and reaching out a hand for Tony to hold. “Come on, you need to rest.” Tony sniffed and looked up at Steve, “I’ll take watch.”  Tony’s lips quirked, the touch of a smile that showed Steve he did right. Tony placed his hand in Steve’s, intertwining their fingers as Steve pulled him inside of their makeshift shelter. 

 

They were met with Natasha sitting up by the fire, giving Tony a sympathetic look and holding a blanket out. Tony wasn’t even surprised; he should've known she would have been listening to everything that had just gone on. 

 

Releasing Steve’s hand, he lowered himself next to the fire, across from Natasha, and wrapped his blanket around his shoulders. He hoped Peter was warm, wherever he was. But Steve was right. He was Tony Stark. He would find a way back to his kid. He would find him, and he would hold him. 

 

And he would never let him go again. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm on Tumblr! ~ @spiderling-the-meme ~
> 
> I post and reblog almost completely Marvel Irondad & Spiderson things, because that's my life now.
> 
> Leave me an ask! I love chatting with people! Feel free to send me prompts or head cannons, or even if you just want to chat about anything, I'd be more than happy to <3

**Author's Note:**

> I'm on Tumblr! ~ @spiderling-the-meme ~
> 
> I post and reblog almost completely Marvel Irondad & Spiderson things, because that's my life now.
> 
> Leave me an ask! I love chatting with people! Feel free to send me prompts or head cannons, or even if you just want to chat about anything, I'd be more than happy to <3


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